This invention relates to the field of sliding and rolling seat mounts, and more particularly to a rolling mount with a selective detent for use in connection with a boat seat.
It is desirable to be able to adjust a vehicle seat forward and backward in order to accommodate occupants of varying height. In the case of a boat, this is often necessary while underway, so that the driver can more easily slide out from behind the steering wheel to attend to an emergency issue, or allow another to drive. The seat must slide or roll freely, yet be held securely in any desired detent position. The detent must release easily, yet not be loosened by the motion of the boat in a seaway (rough water due to weather), and with a heavy driver. The roller mount must be able to withstand the rigors of marine service and a corrosive environment. It also must be capable of mounting a double or triple width seat, as is often found in marine practice. This requires two tracks spaced apart, each with a detent mechanism having no backlash, so as to preclude vibration and rattling. A potential problem with relatively short, parallel tracks set apart is binding while sliding. Rolling element bearings properly deployed can prevent binding.
Marine seats, as well as all marine systems, must withstand forces generated by the six ship motions: roll (rotation about a longitudinal axis); pitch (rotation about a transverse axis); yaw (rotation about a vertical axis); surge (translation along a longitudinal axis); sway (translation along a transverse axis); and heave (translation along a vertical axis). Add to this, sudden acceleration down the face of a wave, or deceleration crashing into a wave.
Vehicle sliding and rolling seat mounts are known in the prior art, especially in automotive practice. Some examples are as follows:
Yamada, U.S. Pat. No. 6,416,130; discloses a track assembly with a roller bearing carrying the load, and upper portions of both slides in sliding contact on ridges for reduced friction and spring bias to take up backlash. The ridges would create too much friction for a marine application. The spring bias feature would not withstand the impact of a boat in a seaway.
Tarusawa, U.S. Pat. No. 6,089,521; Fujita, U.S. Pat. No. 4,756,503; and Yamamura, U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,148; all show various ball bearing and roller bearing slide assemblies. The rolling elements support the slide in downward vertical loading only. For marine service, the slide mount requires rolling element support in both upward and downward vertical loading, and in left and right transverse loading. Anything less would not operate smoothly subject to the six ship motions.
Oh, U.S. Pat. No. 6,874,747; Walter, U.S. Pat. No. 3,286,971; Schuler, U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,315; and Nini, U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,882; each shows a tapered locking pin arrangement. The above devices have no provision to eliminate backlash in the case of two tracks spaced apart, each with a detent mechanism.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide a roller mount for seats that has rolling element support in both upward and downward vertical loading, and in left and right transverse loading.
There is a further need to provide a roller mount for seats of the type described and that exhibits no backlash in the case of two tracks spaced apart, each with a detent mechanism.
There is a yet further need to provide a roller mount for seats of the type described and that will withstand forces generated by the six ship motions in a seaway.
There is a still further need to provide a roller mount for seats of the type described and that is capable of mounting a double or triple width seat, and yet will not bind while sliding.
There is another need to provide a roller mount for seats of the type described and that can withstand the rigors of marine service and a corrosive environment.
There is yet another need to provide a roller mount for seats of the type described and that can be manufactured cost-effectively in large quantities of high quality.